Maverick Vinales has often seen his MotoGP victory chances thwarted by 💙a p♍oor race start.

But the Spaniard made a perfect getaway in Sunday's inaugural Virtual Race, a six-lap online sprint around Mugello featuring ten premi♛er-class riders, arranged to help fill the void in real racing.

🌼Vinales shot from third to first off the line, before eventual race winner Alex Marquez and pole starter Fabio Quartararo lunged inside at Turn 1.

The #12 looked to have played it safe around the outside, only to be taken out by his 2021 factory Yamaha team-mate Quartaಌraro when the young Frenchman lost the front of his Petronas bike while attacking Marquez.

"It's the first time I started well in my life!" Vinales joked. "Then I had the 🐬crash at the first corner."

"I braked a little bit late and lost the front,"🐲 admitted Quartararo. "I made Maverick crash, but it’s just a game!"

I❀ndeed, with only virtual scratches and bruises, bot🐽h swiftly agreed they were "still friends".

Vinales recovered to third place and a digital podium, with Quartararo (who s⛦et the fastest lap of the race) in fourth.

"It was diffic🐭ult to fight back but we had a good rhyth🔜m," said Vinales. "I'm happy to be on the podium."

MotoGP Virtual Race 2&♕nbsp;with a to-be-confirmed rider line-up is to be broa🐻dcast on Sunday, April 12.

The start of the real racing season 🍰is not expected until at least June.

MotoGP Virtual Race 1 – Mugello Results:

1. Alex Marquez, 6 Laps, 10m 38.643s

2. Francesco Bagnaia, +7.093s

3. Maverick Vinales, +8.496s

4. Fabio Quartararo, +9.968s

5. Marc Marquez, +14.416s

6. Alex Rins, +19.548s

7. Joan Mir, +23.247s

8. Miguel Oliveira, +29.702s

9. Iker Lecuona, NC

10. Aleix Espargaro, NC